The Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) has issued a warning regarding
violence and protests expected today across major cities in Egypt.

Large demonstrations with a “high risk of violence” are expected to take place on July 26 in Cairo, Alexandria and other major parts of Egypt, with the Egyptian army prepared to use force to combat “violence and terrorism.”

Travellers are advised to avoid all large gatherings and demonstrations and to leave any areas where protests are happening nearby. The location and route of demonstrations are expected to change with minimal warning.

The FCO continues to advise against all but essential travel to the rest of Egypt following recent weeks of unrest, except for the resorts on the Red Sea including Sharm el Sheikh, and the Egyptian mainland including Hurghada.

EasyJet will continue to operate all planned services to and from the country according to schedule to allow “all customers to make an informed choice by referring to the government’s Foreign & Commonwealth Office travel advice page,” the airline said.

Travellers to and from Luxor who decide not to travel will be entitled to a full refund or a free transfer onto any other easyJet destination, while services to Hurghada and Sharm el Sheikh we operate normally, as both areas remain unaffected.

The Foreign Office minister Alistair Burt, who is visiting Cairo today, has called on all parties to refrain from violence, stressing the need for “calm and restraint, and urged action by all sides to prevent violent demonstrations in the coming days”.

“Now is the time for dialogue and compromise, not confrontation. I stressed the state’s responsibility to uphold the Egyptian people’s right to peaceful protest and the people’s responsibility not to resort to violence,” he added.